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Shastri Research Grant (SRG) 2017-18

Description :

Shastri Indo-Canadian Institute (SICI) is pleased to announce a Call for Applications for Shastri Research Grants (SRG) 2017-18 from the faculty members/academics from SICI’s Canadian and Indian Member Institutions in good standing.

The key objective of SRG are to support new or ongoing research collaborations between SICI’s Canadian and Indian member institutions that promote mobility and capacity building among faculty members and researchers. The research projects conducted in all disciplines of study supported by our member universities ranging from Social Sciences and Humanities to STEM (sciences, technology, engineering, mathematics), business, management, etc. are eligible for seeking funds from this and all other SICI programs. The research themes involving partnership of teams composed of at least one Indian and one Canadian member institution of SICI, which addresses any issue pertinent to one or both the countries would be eligible for funding by this program. The research themes may also address issues of relevance to businesses and industries or other users of this knowledge.

Please note the following points:

  • The minimum number of grants and minimum funds available for each grant, as specified below, is guaranteed.
  • Although minimum grant amount is specified as CAD$5000, the award amount may reach up to CAD$8,000, if extra funds become available for this program. Therefore you may request SICI grant up to a maximum of CAD$8,000, while keeping in mind that you may receive only CAD$5000.
  • Besides, SICI may consider awarding more number of grants as well, subject to availability of additional funds after due process of approval.
  • Institutions may receive only one SRG award, and receipt of the award is subject to the institution being a SICI member in good standing with fully paid-up membership for the current year (2017-18).
  • In addition to the applications’ merit, preference will be given to member institutions that have not received any SICI grants in the past 2 years (2015-16 and 2016-17).
  • The selected awardees will have 2 weeks to confirm their acceptance of the SICI grant (subject to their institution’s eligibility).
  • Any declined project grant or availability of surplus funds may result in award of grants among any of the wait-listed applications, subject to application of other rules of SICI which allows benefits to be more broadly distributed among its members.
  • Projects that entail holding seminars, workshops or conferences without any research component are not eligible.

Value:
CAD$ 5,000/per project. 

Number of Awards:
9 (Nine)

Duration:

The grant must be fully utilized within the period from 1 November 2017 to 31 May 2018.

Eligibility:

  • Proposed SRG projects must involve a bi-national research initiative that addresses issues of relevance to India and/or Canada.
  • Full time Faculty members of Canadian and Indian member institutions are eligible to apply for this grant. A list of SICI member institution is available here: http://www.sici.org/about/members/.
  • The Applicant must be a citizen or permanent resident of Canada or India.
  • Preference will be given to applications that involve young faculty/research scholars and students (undergraduate, graduate) in the proposed project

Application Requirements:

  • Please apply online APPLICATION PACKAGE to http:// http://shastriinstitute.org/gms/  on or before 27th September 2017 by 11:00pm (MST).
  • Mention: “Application for Shastri Research Grant (SRG) 2017-18” in the subject line
  •  A COMPLETE APPLICATION PACKAGE should be a single pdf file with the following documents:
  1. An electronic SRG 2017-18 Application Form (duly completed);
  2. A Project Proposal containing all the information asked for in the application form #5 -11 (i.e., Project Title, Abstract, Background and Rationale, Objectives, Project Summary Description and Budget). The adjudication panel consists of volunteer professors from our member institutions and while best efforts are made to get diverse expertise in the panels, it is in the best interest of the applicant to use language that is comprehensible to your colleagues who are from other disciplines. Onus is on the applicant to demonstrate binational character of the project and relevance of research issue to one or both the countries. See Evaluation Criteria for additional information.
  3. Curriculum Vitae not exceeding five pages each for the lead applicant and the co-applicant. All additional pages after 5th page in each CV will be removed and/or ignored during evaluation.
  4. Copy of Passports/PR Card (both applicants)
  5. The application must be signed by all the applicants and they must be countersigned by appropriate Institutional authorities in each Institute, exactly as it is required for approval of any application made to Federal granting agencies in each country.
  6. Certificates for Ethical Approval of human or animal studies from the member institution’s duly appointed authorities (if applicable). The approval certificates may be submitted later upon receipt of the award. However, no funds will be released until these certificates have been submitted to SICI office.

 

Acceptable Expenses

  • If the overall budget of the proposed project is greater than the maximum permissible grant amount, details of additional sources of funding should be provided to determine the feasibility of the project.
  • Eligible expenses: international and local travel (economy class), accommodation and related costs, stipends for students/research assistants, rental of equipment, consumables for research, communication, publications, copying, printing costs, and translation. Travel expenses may either be for Canadians going to India or for Indians coming to Canada, plus local travel.
  • All awardees must submit a report including proof of expenditure and research outcomes at the end of each project.

 

Evaluation Criteria:

Please note that the panel of adjudicators is composed of volunteer professors of member organizations in India or Canada. Hence the applicants are advised to make an effort to write all the sections of the application in a clear language that would generally be understood by your colleagues from other disciplines. Please avoid excessive use of technical field-specific jargon and acronyms; and if required, do explain these terms clearly at their first appearance.

SRG Adjudicating committee will make the final decision concerning successful applicants based upon the following marking system:

1. Project’s objectives, scope and methodology (10 points)

  • Are the project objectives and scope clear and easy to conceptualize in operational terms?
  • Is the project methodology appropriate and convincing for achieving the project’s objectives?

2. The coherence and importance of proposed activities to achieve anticipated outcomes (10 points)

  • Are the activities proposed in the project description rationale in order to bring the anticipated outcomes on the project?

3. Scholarship of Researchers (10 points)

  • Do the applicants (lead and co-applicant) have necessary academic and research background plus history of collaboration in the area of proposed research study to ensure the success of the project?

4. Engagement of students and or young researchers in the project(10 points)

  • Does the proposed project plan to engage students/young researcher in the project activities for capacity building?

5. Budget (10 points)

  • Are the resources allocated in the budget realistic given the project’s planned activities?
  • Are the project’s budget lines conforming to SICI’s standard project expenses?

6. Timeline (5 points)

  • Is the project execution timeline well-structured and does it allow a realistic amount of time to achieve the project’s objectives and goals?

Disbursement of Funds

75% of the project grant will be disbursed upon signing of letter of agreement between SICI and recipient’s institution and remaining 25% to be released upon submission and approval of a final report to SICI by the recipient.

 

Application Deadline:

27 September 2017 (11:00pm MST)

Please note:

  • Late and incomplete applications will not be considered.
  • All application materials must be submitted through the Grant Management System online. Any material that is sent by other means (courier, post, fax or electronic) to our offices will not be entered in the competition.
  • Names of the successful applicants will be uploaded on SICI website (http://www.sici.org/home/).

 

Application Form:
SRG_Applicaiton Form_2017-18

Report Form:
SRG-Final_Report-2017-18
 

For more information, please contact Mahmuda at the Calgary office:

Mahmuda Aldeen
Program and Member Relations Officer
Shastri Indo-Canadian Institute
1418 Education Tower 

2500 University Dr NW
Calgary AB T2N 1N4
Phone: (403) 220-3220(direct)
Email: (maldeen@ucalgary.ca) 

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